Football Sunday

For the first time (I think ever), I went over to a friend's house for the Sunday games.  They, like Matt, are NY fans (only their team is the Bills, not the Giants), and they also have kids our kids age, and our families have a ton in common in general, so it was a very nice matchup.  The Bills won their match against the Eagles, and unfortunately the Giants lost to the Seahawks--but I could tell Matt had a great time anyway, as he was much more pleasant than usual in the aftermath.  :o)

I tried out a new recipe for Chinese turkey mini meatballs--which taste a lot like gyoza filling--complete with tasty dipping sauce!  AND, I discovered that if you cook mini meatballs in a mini muffin pan (1 meatball per muffin cup), you end up with much juicier meatballs than if you bake them on a flat cookie sheet.  Also whipped up some gluten free brownies, which Matt and I have already consumed waaay too much of as well as a personal pan gluten free pizza (green onion and kielbasa) so he wouldn't feel envious when everyone else was chowing down on Papa John's.

The kids had a great time playing!  They are getting old enough to play easy board games (like whack-a-mole) on their own, and also enjoyed a football-themed face paint session (although my oldest opted for Disney's Jasmine, as opposed to the much easier pink football with purple laces the other girls went for). I can never say enough how great it is to be living on base--particularly on this base that is teeming with playmates our kids' age.  It is remarkable, as well, how generally easy to meet/approach/get to know military families are--particularly coming fresh off of two years' reserve time where we really only made two close civilian playdate connections.

Anyway, we had a lovely time this afternoon and I could see us enjoying Sunday games in this fashion regularly.  Matt will be heading over himself next weekend, though, for the Bills v. Giants matchup, as the girls and I will be road tripping to/from New Orleans for a Princess and the Frog-themed adventure visit with my sister-in-law and her boyfriend/fiance.  Very excited to see them, but VERY anxious about squeezing a total of >24h driving time into 4.5 days!!